Energy International provides smoke and fire curtains to the construction of the New Bahrain International Airport
Located in the Northern Gulf, Bahrain International Airport is one of the Middle East’s key hubs.
In 2006 the airport launched a USD1.1 billion (BHD414.1 million) expansion project that included the reconstruction of the existing terminal, expanding the project in 2008 to include the construction of a new VIP terminal and airport center.
The three-phase project, a joint venture of Dubai-based Arabtec and Turkish contractor TAV, will expand capacity to 45 million passengers annually when fully operational in the fourth quarter of 2020.
The new passenger terminal will occupy 220,000 square meters, about four times the size of the current airport. The new facility is designed similar to the current airport with departures located on the upper floors and arrivals on the lower floors.
The departure hall and two premium-class check-in halls will span a total area of more than 5,000 square-meters. The arrival area features 36 passport control booths, five e-gates, eight baggage claim belts and a 1,000 square-meter duty-free shop.
The main terminal features 108 check-in desks, 24 passport control booths, 28 security lanes, a 9,000 square-meter duty-free retail space, premium-class lounges, food and beverage zones, 24-jetty-served departure gates and an automated baggage handling system with early bag storage.
State-of-the-art technology will improve passenger convenience, safety and security and expedite the check-in-process.
Energy International Corporation was chosen to supply a fire safety system, including smoke and fire curtains, to the airport project.
“We have worked with contractor TAV on the installation of BLE curtains for the Madinah Airport,” said Marwan Mroueh, Area Manager for Energy International Controls, Dammam. “Due to our previous successful experience with TAV, they contacted us to bid on the Bahrain Airport project.”
“We were bidding against some tough competitors,” said Mroueh, “but our previous history, superior technical support and price gave us the advantage.”
BLE, located in Sheffield, United Kingdom, is a leading global supplier of smoke and fire curtains.
BLE and Energy International engineers worked with contractors ARABTEC and TAV to design and specify a comprehensive smoke and fire curtain safety system.
The specifications called for 13 fire curtains (one of the curtains spanned 35 meters wide by 10 meters high) installed in the departure and transit terminals, 50 gravity failsafe smoke curtains with a total of 260 linear meters installed in the arrival terminal, 310 square meters of static smoke curtains which were installed on top of the fire curtain boxes to the roof and 30 square meters of heat-tempered glass suspended from the ceiling around the elevators.
“The team from Energy International UAE in Abu Dhabi supported us on the project providing shop drawings and coordinating with BLE on the technical aspects of the project,” said Mroueh.
Gravity failsafe curtains are stored in boxes installed inside the ceiling and deploy when the fire alarm is set off.
Smoke curtains are deployed to contain smoke and fire slowing down how quickly it can spread across a building allowing more time for safe emergency evacuation.
The 50 curtains for the Bahrain airport project were connected so that all 260 linear meters deploy at the same time.
BLE fire curtains deploy automatically to compartmentalize a fire and create protected escape routes without compromising fire resistance.
All BLE products are made from top quality materials and are rigorously tested and manufactured to the highest technical and quality standards, including BS, EN and UL.
